The Awakening Written by Kate Chopin - Essay Example

The Awakening Charlotte Gilman and Kate Chopin were such women who had illustrated the challenges thrown towards patriarchal ideologies. Theytalked about how women could move beyond the conventional barrier of ideology imposed upon them. For instance, Gilman cites a reflection of this situation as she describes the changes in the wallpaper, saying, “There are things in that paper that nobody knows but me, or ever will. Behind that outside pattern the dim shapes get clearer every day. It is always the same shape, only very numerous.” (Gilman, 1891, 6) She wonders whether all women would be able to walk out of these artificial misleading designs created deftly by men – “I wonder if they all come out of that wall-paper as I did? (Gilman, 1891, 12) Against the context of discrimination, it was contended by Emma Hart Willard, “women were entitled to the same dignities and freedoms as men” (Lipman-Blumen, 1984, 136). Emma published a “Plan for Improving Female Education” in 1819. This was meant for extending the roles of women by crossing the domestic threshold into the public arena or the market place and also served as a teaching means for children (Lipman-Blumen, 1984, 136). Men imposed their male dominance upon their female counterpart, causing an inhibition of creativity and stifled self-esteem, a repression that could only be unraveled by a sudden outbreak of passion and energy on behalf of the female The protagonist of the novel, ‘The Awakening’, written by Kate Chopin, Edna embarks on a voyage of self-discovery after spending a pleasant summer with her young admirer, Robert Lebrun. The title of the novel is her ‘awakening’ to her innermost self, which she had kept repressed for long as regards for the conventions and mores of society. But, when chance encounters lay awake the dormant desires and feelings she is no longer able to control them and decides to take her life in her own hands by deciding to follow her heart instead of blindly being in the shadows of her husband. Edna makes the radical decision of flouting convention by leaving her husband, having an adulterous affair and turning into an artist; all this to prove her sense of self-worth. All her emotional, intellectual and sexual feelings come to the fore after subsuming them in her inner consciousness for so long. In the twenty first century, Edna would be characterized as the typical feminist and the reason why I am drawn towards her character is that I can respect her for her decision to live for herself. Edna suddenly finds herself dissatisfied with her married life and the conservative lifestyle, which she is forced to follow. Her fierce desire to discover her own identity will find many takers in the modern world and she also has the courage to act upon that desire. The desire to carve your own identity and the courage to actually do it are two different things but Edna manages them though not to a happy ending. Breaking free of the role appointed to her by society, she finally rejects the typical ‘devoted mother and wife’ role and seeks happiness only for herself. Though it is easy to identify with Edna’s feminist side in the desire to do something (like she finally turns into an artist) which will be her identity and not merely an appendage of her husband’s, it is still difficult to reconcile oneself to her wanton neglect of her children’s feelings by abandoning them and running away to live with her lover. Had she been childless, it may have been easier to let her leave her husband for her lover. But when children are involved it does seem extremely selfish to abandon them flagrantly with no thought other than one’s own pleasure: “I would give up the unessential (for my children); I would give my money, I would give my life for my children; but I wouldn’t give myself.” (55). In the 19th century it was very difficult for a woman to flout societal mores and live on her own terms. The fact that Edna showed that courage speaks volumes for her steely determination once she had set her mind to it. It was no easy feat in that era when compared to the 21st century when it would be far easier for me to take such a step as society is no longer so rigid and bound by norms. Through a series of experiences or ‘awakenings’, Edna changes into an independent woman and shocks society with her boldness as a woman who is concerned with only her passions and urges. This total consummation of Edna in her own desires is something, which cannot be identified by me. The irony of Edna’s life is that her very ‘awakenings’ isolate her from others and eventually make way for her state of total solitude, which leads to tragedy. The water of which she was initially scared now beckons her to her own death: “The voice of the sea is seductive, never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander I abysses of solitude” (135). In Charlotte Gilman’s, “The Yellow Wallpaper”, the god like attitude of the medical professional illustrates the male arrogance when the doctor in the story also asks his wife to rest in order to be cured and made this ‘rest cure’ a weapon which would prevent her from nurturing her writing talents. This gradually crushed her self-esteem as he pretended to know everything and sweetly gained dictatorship over her life. This cure requires total rest feeding and isolation. One instance of his sweet talk may be quoted as follows: “He says no one but myself can help me out of it, that I must use my will and self-control and not let any silly fancies run away with me”. (Gilman, 1891, 6) This called for an intense domestic care to be taken by the women. Women have attempted to get read of the conventional definitions of their roles and the ideology forced upon them, thus seeking for a redefinition of Womanhood. Charlotte Perkins Gilman illustrated her own struggle to overcome the patriarchal constraints in order to be able to write, in her work ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’. Here she talks about the dominating care of her husband as she says, “He is very careful and loving, and hardly lets me stir without special direction… There comes John, and I must put this away, --he hates to have me write a word. We have been here two weeks, and I havent felt like writing before, since that first day. I am sitting by the window now, up in this atrocious nursery, and there is nothing to hinder my writing as much as I please, save lack of strength” (Gilman, 1891, 2) The male section enjoyed more freedom and flexibility in the social structure. On one hand men enjoyed the goodies from the private life where they got the nurture of the women as well as the authoritative position. On the other hand they cooped up the benefits of freedom in the public domain. They acquired an identity of their own in the society through competitive market interaction. However the women were induced to be immobile through exploitation of their biological framework, which made them believe that they could not enter the public sphere where they did not belong. The ideology of true Womanhood did not accept the “growing work force of women”, and also “did not sanctioned professionalism and careerism for women”(Papke, 1995, 12). The lives of women were supposed to ensure service for the welfare of the family and persevere social stability at the same time. In this context women could be called emotional servants. Gilman highlights the growing nervousness that was brought about through constant loving domination rendered by her husband at home. The fact that John would not encourage her writing let alone appreciate them, she gradually suffered from low-self esteem. The following lines bring this out: “But these nervous troubles are dreadfully depressing. John does not know how much I really suffer. He knows there is no REASON to suffer, and that satisfies him.” (Gilman, 1891, 3) The work represents the Cult of Womanhood, which ties up the women folk to the ambience of the home and family. Here women have been confined to the defined parameters that have been set by men. Gilman refers to the time when constant domination negatively affected her creativity, as she had to put in the extra effort in order to overcome the mental set back and arouse the self-encouragement within her. The following lines make the state of her mental condition clear: “I did write for a while in spite of them; but it DOES exhaust me a good deal--having to be so sly about it, or else meet with heavy opposition. I sometimes fancy that my condition if I had less opposition and more society and stimulus--but John says the very worst thing I can do is to think about my condition, and I confess it always makes me feel bad.” (Gilman, 1891, 1) Thus, her creative talents were definitely exhausted, as she had to swim against the flow in order to achieve her passion and provide nutrition to her creativity. Women were expected to be modest and submissive. In many cases it is the women themselves who echo the viewpoint of male instead of understanding another female. The author comments on the attitude of the doctor’s sister, “There comes Johns sister. Such a dear girl as she is, and so careful of me! I must not let her find me writing. She is a perfect and enthusiastic housekeeper, and hopes for no better profession. I verily believe she thinks it is the writing, which made me sick!” (Gilman, 1891, 4) Such women often echo the voice of the male beliefs. The obligation of religion was tact to calm down any desires that could provoke them to deviate from these standards set by the society. Again the idea of submission conveyed a sense of dependence (economic and social) to the patriarchal authority (Welter, 1978, 373-377). Gilman had focused on the wallpaper in the room and described it as follows: “The wall-paper…is torn off in spots, and it sticketh closer than a brother--they must have had perseverance as well as hatred. I can see a strange, provoking, formless sort of figure, that seems to sulk about behind that silly and conspicuous front design.” (Gilman, 1891, 4-5) this indicates that the designs of the wallpaper were trying to hide the reality of form, which was missing in her life too. The creativity she was capable of was put behind the wallpaper with crafty manipulation that may be compared to the ‘designs’ as she comments, “the pattern is torturing” (Gilman, 1891, 8). The woman had to tear it off totally in order to set her talents free. Her continuous efforts had been able to bring some tears, but the job was yet to be over. Women had to stay within the boundaries of the private sphere due to the predefined role. (Welter, 1978, 372) It was only by traveling beyond the wallpaper that a woman could be able to redefine their roles by defying the corrupted power forced by men upon them. A new ideology created was to be followed and this comprised of their entry into the public sphere and outdoor activities as well. However, the dominion reflected at home was also prominent in the public sphere as well. As women were allowed to come out into the public life, the work relations became severely dominated by the male. The workplace is patriarchal and women are treated with underestimation of their talents and strength. One need not search for the oppression and subjugation of women folk during the Victorian era; even in today’s modern society the gender difference is quite prominent. The issue of gender biasness has reached almost all fields in social sciences. Amongst all the other forms of discrimination (others like race and ethnicity) this is a criterion of differentiation that is mostly felt and existent in the society, perhaps because this difference relates to biology and is more clearly visible to the naked eye. The theories of gender studies explore and unravel the areas of sexuality and difference in the gender related topics, often relating them to the literary theory. Works in literature have represented women in this context of the social and gender bias existent at different time periods. Despite the women suffrage movement and struggle for liberation, what has changed is the form of entrapment of women but time has not been able to eliminate the impact and bias altogether. Thus the suffrage movement needs to be viewed in a new light where the women will have an equal exposure in every terms and the essence of her presence or existence should be given due recognition and respect instead of waiting for sudden erratic outbursts that look forward to begin a social movement. Work cited 1. Chopin, Kate, The Awakening, Kessinger Publishing, 2004 2. Gilman, Charlotte, “The Yellow Wallpaper.” New England Magazine, 1891, available at:http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Charlotte_Perkins_Gilman/The_Yellow_Wallpaper/The_Yellow_Wallpaper_p1.html (accessed on 2 February 2008) 3. Lipman-Blumen, Jean. Gender Roles and Power. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1984. 4. Papke, Mary.E. Verging on the Abyss: The Social Fiction of Kate Chopin and Edith Wharton. New York: Greenwood P, 1995 5. Welter, Barbara. “The Cult of True Womanhood: 1820-1860.” The American Family in Social Historical Perspective. Ed. Michael Gordon. New York: St. Martin’s P, 1978   Read More

Though it is easy to identify with Edna’s feminist side in the desire to do something (like she finally turns into an artist) which will be her identity and not merely an appendage of her husband’s, it is still difficult to reconcile oneself to her wanton neglect of her children’s feelings by abandoning them and running away to live with her lover. Had she been childless, it may have been easier to let her leave her husband for her lover. But when children are involved it does seem extremely selfish to abandon them flagrantly with no thought other than one’s own pleasure: “I would give up the unessential (for my children); I would give my money, I would give my life for my children; but I wouldn’t give myself.” (55). In the 19th century it was very difficult for a woman to flout societal mores and live on her own terms.

The fact that Edna showed that courage speaks volumes for her steely determination once she had set her mind to it. It was no easy feat in that era when compared to the 21st century when it would be far easier for me to take such a step as society is no longer so rigid and bound by norms. Through a series of experiences or ‘awakenings’, Edna changes into an independent woman and shocks society with her boldness as a woman who is concerned with only her passions and urges. This total consummation of Edna in her own desires is something, which cannot be identified by me.

The irony of Edna’s life is that her very ‘awakenings’ isolate her from others and eventually make way for her state of total solitude, which leads to tragedy. The water of which she was initially scared now beckons her to her own death: “The voice of the sea is seductive, never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander I abysses of solitude” (135). In Charlotte Gilman’s, “The Yellow Wallpaper”, the god like attitude of the medical professional illustrates the male arrogance when the doctor in the story also asks his wife to rest in order to be cured and made this ‘rest cure’ a weapon which would prevent her from nurturing her writing talents.

This gradually crushed her self-esteem as he pretended to know everything and sweetly gained dictatorship over her life. This cure requires total rest feeding and isolation. One instance of his sweet talk may be quoted as follows: “He says no one but myself can help me out of it, that I must use my will and self-control and not let any silly fancies run away with me”. (Gilman, 1891, 6) This called for an intense domestic care to be taken by the women. Women have attempted to get read of the conventional definitions of their roles and the ideology forced upon them, thus seeking for a redefinition of Womanhood.

Charlotte Perkins Gilman illustrated her own struggle to overcome the patriarchal constraints in order to be able to write, in her work ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’. Here she talks about the dominating care of her husband as she says, “He is very careful and loving, and hardly lets me stir without special direction… There comes John, and I must put this away, --he hates to have me write a word. We have been here two weeks, and I havent felt like writing before, since that first day. I am sitting by the window now, up in this atrocious nursery, and there is nothing to hinder my writing as much as I please, save lack of strength” (Gilman, 1891, 2) The male section enjoyed more freedom and flexibility in the social structure.

On one hand men enjoyed the goodies from the private life where they got the nurture of the women as well as the authoritative position. On the other hand they cooped up the benefits of freedom in the public domain. They acquired an identity of their own in the society through competitive market interaction. However the women were induced to be immobile through exploitation of their biological framework, which made them believe that they could not enter the public sphere where they did not belong.

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